Bringing together all of the James Bond short stories in one volume for the first time, this is the ultimate celebration of suave and deadly secret agent 007. Whether he's making an unexpected discovery in the Bahamas, hunting down a Cuban hit man in wild country, smashing an international drug ring in Rome, or on the trail of a murderous assassin in Berlin's sniper alley, dangerous missions and beautiful women come with the job for James Bond. And this agent is always a consummate professional.

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Publisher's Summary

Bringing together all of the James Bond short stories in one volume for the first time, this is the ultimate celebration of suave and deadly secret agent 007.

Whether he's making an unexpected discovery in the Bahamas, hunting down a Cuban hit man in wild country, smashing an international drug ring in Rome, or on the trail of a murderous assassin in Berlin's sniper alley, dangerous missions and beautiful women come with the job for James Bond. And this agent is always a consummate professional.

Great stories with a great narrator. Simon Vance is one of the best narrators around. Someone with a lesser degree of talent could have botched the Bond books, but Vance respects the material and the time they were written. The characters are distinct. The pacing is perfect. Even the women voices are handled well. The books have been underrated for a long time - the Bond on the page is much different than the Bond on the screen, and the short stories were even more of a change of pace from the novels. For example, in Quantum of Solace, Bond is a secondary character, sitting in a kitchen, listening to a story (and it's a good one). This collection is well worth the expense and the time spent listening.

These short stories do a great job granting the listener access to an interior dialogue sorely missing from the on-screen Bond persona. I highly recommend it. You never forget the the true Flemming definiton of the "Quantum of Solace".

These stories have the titles that you know from the movies but do you know the stories as Ian Fleming told them? Some of these stories do follow the tales somewhat that are used for the movies of the same name. The ones that don't are actually some a the better ones in this collection. I especially liked Octopussy. (again, the story not the movie) It gives the character of James Bond great depth.

I gave Simon Vance 5 stars on this rating. It was hard at first to imagine his voice as that of James Bond. With each story his voice sucked me further and further in.

I first read Goldfinger as a boy (and watched the movie), and have never stopped loving Ian Fleming since. Unlike his other novels, this book is a series of short stories -- some action-oriented and others pensive and reflective. That includes the title piece, "Quantum of Solace," in which Fleming muses how and why people in a relationship or a marriage hurt each other, and extract revenge. The last story, about New York in the 1960s, was a bit of a letdown.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

All James Bond novels keep me on the edge of my seat.

What about Simon Vance’s performance did you like?

Vance is a terrific narrator of James Bond. I think he does all of Audible's readings.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. Being a series of short stories, it is suited to multiple sittings.

Where does Quantum of Solace rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I'd say somewhere in the middle or a bit higher.

What did you like best about this story?

I had never read the Fleming stories. I'd only seen the movies. The stories are much grittier without all the hollywood witty quips and over the top stunts, etc. I was really surprised at the quality of the Bond audiobook. Should have read them long ago, I guess.

Which scene was your favorite?

No one scene in particular stood out to me. It was more of an overall feeling of satisfaction.

If you could rename Quantum of Solace, what would you call it?

Don't think I have the qualifications to be changing the author's work!

Any additional comments?

I am excited to download more of the Bond stories now that I have gotten a taste of the originals.

I would probably recommend these to someone who is looking for a series of shorts that don't require much attention; as long as they're clear as to what they're getting. You've seen all of these stories as parts of full length James Bond stories. These barely stand on their own as presented and are in need of plot development, character development and closing.

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